The Blood of Heroes - The Blood of Heroes
Justin Broadrick of Godflesh is the big name on this album. But it is a real collaboration of great music minds that has created one of this year’s best albums for me.Nothing new in metal to mix the electronic beats of techno take Fear Factory and Pichshifter in the past have done a great job.but this goes one step further in making a genuine sound scape that could be used as a million selling sound track for a film.Bill Laswell who has produced some iconic albums throws in some bass guitars that really make the album feel fantastic.The album was recorded in many locations and over time this has moulded an real unique sound that any individual interested in music should own.The beats and groves on the album driving into the metal/punk/industrial classic sound with a real twit in that it never gets boring.A great album for 'music' fans and one that I think I will still play in years to come.Each track has been worked on between people with such great music understanding that you never know what is coming up next. Find it hidden at the back shelf of many music shops as it is only a few who will ever know how go
Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier
15th studio album by heavy metal kings Iron Maiden is here. Big question. Is it any better than the last three albums? No. But we have been spoilt of late. Brave New World in 2000 was a great start for the band after the return of Bruce Dickinson and the follow up in 2003 Dance of Death was for me the best album they have done since Seventh Son... A Matter of Life and Death in 2006 was a continuation of the last album and again a great sounding album.Five years after that we have the new offering and it is a great album and again the band move in a slight prog direction for this one album. Not so much guitar prog but more of an attitude in the album. Five of the songs are over 8 minutes long and unlike prog it does not get too boring.The first track has shades of 1995s X Factor with a long space themed intro that then slices you with the guitars and it is time to rock. El Dorado follows and is the weakest song for me on the album. Mother of Mercy bring the band back to the galloping sound we love then a bit of a ballad follows (as ballad as Maiden get).The album does get better and better as it goes and unlike the last few albums does not have as big a riffs as before. Still more of a sound than an all-out riff fest.Nico's drums are far less punchy on this album from the last, that is a shame as he deserves to be heard. Isle of Avalon shows that the band can still do the long into build up like Fear of the Dark. Starblind does the same with a nice arpeggiated intro that gets filled up with a classic rocky sound into a wall of vocals by Bruce and then solo time for the three guitar players. As the album progresses you get a bit of a feel of "is this still maiden on the stereo" and that is a good thing as the songs continue you then hear what we all love. The album is a great addition to the maiden catalog and i feel a big risk sound wise. As so many people hated X Factor and then loved A Matter... even thou they both sound very similar. If fans like em they will like this. But give it a few plays and album 15 is a good un. Four albums from 2000 and all up there with the best metal bands around.
Jackdaw4 - The Eternal Struggle For Justice
Something of a hidden gem is Jackdaw 4. Previous two albums were lessons in how to make perfect chart music. 2005s 'Gramophone Logic' and 2008s 'Bipolar Diversions'. This is again a follow on from the other albums and song after song are chart hits and pop melodies with harmonics that catch you and make you turn it up on a sunny day. But the band have yet to really tour or even make a video so it will always be between us so keep it to yourself. Not a bad song on the album much like the other two, play it to friends and see em sing along after a few minutes. Great production and sound on the CD help to give this music a real wow factor. With a range of other instruments and big harmonies you would think you have went back to the 70's glam rock era at times. Go on risk a few quid on this and you will have one of your albums of the year. Easy!
Jason & the Scorchers - Halcyon Times
Album number seven for the cowpunk band, on the back of some touring in 2008 the band felt it was time for a new album and a shot at bettering the last 30 years. Time has been very kind on the band and a rip roaring rock and roll album is included with the fantastic country mix that the band are well known for. The album starts with Mr Hodges guitar in a riff that takes you back to 1981 and provides the first glimpse of how good this is going to be. The band even know this as in the middle of the song is a small sample from years ago. Again just to show that they are back. Much of the album is more a rock and roll album and old Status Quo does come to mind. But that is a good thing as one time they were able to put out great new albums. The band has two new members and it feels just as good as it was back then. You can tell the new guys make the album feel a bit different from others but that is in the long run a good thing as the band are happy to start a fresh. Great songs and great song writing by the band and guests, some big names in rock are asked for input and this has helped to keep every song on the album interesting, you try to find the songs that are written by who and see what one is better. Very good production and a great vocal performance help this to be one of the bands best. No fillers and all out rock n country to the end.
Rotting Christ – AEALO
Now and again an album comes along that makes you ask what the fuck you are listening to. Most people deem this bad music as they are used to listening to the same style or artist. Nothing wrong with only liking a few bands but at the end of the day if you are like me and want to hear new music and mostly to hear albums that make you play it again right after it has finished then, start with this one. The band has been going for years and the name of the band is a big talking point, not anymore! The music is so good on this release that they may never follow it up. An amazing mix of extreme music that contains some great riffs and a rhythm section that twists and changes so much during the album you would think it is different people playing on each track. The vocals may for some be too much as the growl can put many non-metal fans off. But a few tracks in the melody is so well made within the band that the vocals are only another instrument. The album contains Greek nationalistic overtones and nods to ancient Hellenic culture but this helps the band to move on from the Black Metal past they have. Melodic touches also come in with help from a Greek choir, staple that with clean female vocals the album has more to give than simply head banging. Worth the money alone is Diamanda Galas guesting on the last track helping the band to cover her own song “Orders from the Dead.” I have said it many times but extreme metal has so much to offer and I feel it is the most progressive music in the world, I give you evidence in the form of this album.
Burzum – Belus
Yeah I know he is a murderer and a racist but he has made some great albums. Seriously if you like industrial/noise/electronic you should have a listen to ‘Dunkelheit’ and ‘Hvis Lyset Tar Oss’. Both are great albums and his latest follows up on that. Some great long drawn out riffs with the usual down tuned sound you expect. As he has improved as a guitar player the keyboards are now shoved aside and replaced with the six stringer. But the atmospheric feel of other albums is not quite present on this album. It does feel more of a rock album as the guitar includes some great riffs and true to the style keeps the repetitiveness that the keyboards had. Also at times it feels like a real band playing but it is almost entirely him playing everything. And two songs are from twenty years ago; this does show in the song writing and gives a classic best off feel. Again this music is always given the Black Metal tag and at times yes it is but at the end of the day it is also as far removed as you can get from metal.
Triptykon - Eparistera Daimones
Thomas Gabriel Fischer, founding member of the pioneering heavy metal bands Hellhammer and Celtic Frost broke up Frost after the amazing Monotheist album and now his new project. Not a big difference in the music content but a great album again. Very heavy, dark and hate filled music is contained on the album. Much of the time Celtic Frost were a very melodic and at times pop in content as they were the reason many people got into metal, easily accessible and still considered metal. This doom riff filled album has been made to cross no boundaries and showers the listener in metal from start to finish. Think of Electric Wizard crashing into GG Allen and you can get an idea of some of the sound and vocals that are here. The production is top notch and helps to portray the avant-garde metal that fans love so much. This will never make it on Radio 1 like Celtic Frost did.
JARBOE - The Path
Another great solo album by Jarboe . Her ‘Men Album’ in 2005 was a great album that collaborated over 2CD with male guest musicians from around the world was a classic return to form and this new album takes her back to the Swans days. This album is a soundtrack for a game called The Path and marks her first ever task in making music for a game. Dark and organic experimental music is her choice for this soundtrack as the game is basically about a child wandering about a dark wood trying to find grandma’s house (No really it is). The game has been looked on as a real change in direction for computer games and that is pretty much Jarboe in a nutshell. Dark ambient music with at times vocals that are made to make you feel uneasy, helped by Kris Force the music is so addictive I feel I want to switch the CD player off but can’t. You never can review an album like this as it is so hard to describe but you can single it out as being very good. I have for years said Jarboe is an amazing artist and this album shows this.
The Fall - Our Future Your Clutter
A band I have liked from a far for many years but due to the band being run like a shambles I have never seen them live. I hoped for a classic performance and that is what I got. Mark E Smith lasted 35 minutes before walking off. The album again is in the post punk/Alt Rock category but the band does play very well making it a highlight of the year for me but not one of the best gigs I have been to mind you.. Much of the album the rhythm section is used very well and it really gives the album a positive feel. With the album being co-produced by a drummer I am not surprised it sounds like this. Mark has a very distinct vocal range that seems to bellow over anything that is on the album but he is the co-producer. Also his wife handles the keyboards on the LP and again the sound comes over so striking that it should not work but somehow they have pulled it off. Mark just does not want to stay in the past and that is something I like as well. The riffs and lyrics contained here at times make to giggle and also ask how they get away with it. The album just gives of such character and a want to be listened to by the young to show that an old dog can learn new tricks. He is on the same label as the Arctic Monkeys and music wise he could bury them.
Nachtmystium - Addicts: Black Meddle, Pt. II
This band a few years ago turned the metal world on its head with the 'Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1' album. And again they have done a great album that has made the listener really think if the like it or not. A fool would hate this kind of music with some great drum work and amazing production the album shines with ideas. A big thing that Nachtmystium do in the studio is to involve many session musicians in the recording of an album. With this element the album has a really mixed sound that incorporates other styles. Welcome to this album the sound of gothic and industrial music tangled up with the Black Metal thorns of the bands past. Many metal bands have never tried to mix and match an album like this as they would scare the fans away. Metal is full of fans that only like one style or band. I know many Metallica fans that don’t like thrash metal but this is not so with Black Metal. The music has evolved by band so much that a change is welcomed with open ears and when it works it can be amazing. Nothing new on this album but the guts to mix styles and play with real passion. Some great guitar riffs and solos give the music the stereotypical patches but it never once gets boring.
Darkthrone – Circle the Wagons
Real odd one this band were one of the pioneers of Black Metal and I mean way back in the day when it was really just noise. They have done some great albums like Hate Them in 2003. The band then decided to change the style the write and play and this album is the 3rd album into the new era. What I like is how the album catches you with the guitar hooks. Simple punk riffs flowing one after another. Fairly clear vocals are trying to entice some sort of sing along tune in your head. The band has been reported to have switched to a punk style but overall if you look at the world of guitar music it is all just rock music. Drums, Bass, Guitar and vocals are what make Punk, Metal, Rock and even many pop bands. If you like rock music you may well love